I like the idea of Paul Maurice. Yes I know, he hasn’t won, and the Toronto experience was nothing to write home about. But he is very
thoughtful and expressive on the TSN panels, and he has been through enough playoff wars to warrant interest.

I will always have a soft spot for what his Canes did to Fatso in the last two minutes of their Game 7 a couple of years ago

“Being a college coach is way different than being a pro coach. Keith Allain had just 4 NHL draft picks on his Yale roster. The rest are kids that will probably work at Goldman Sachs.”

It was snarky, but I think the fact remains. The skill set needed to get results from 18-23 year olds is way different than what it takes to get results from professionals. College coaching is a lot of recruiting, mentoring, player development, and it’s a lot of riding the bus. I’m sure there are guys who can make the jump, but what evidence is there that Allain even wants to be that guy? He hasn’t coached in the NHL in years.

10AM: According to Larry Brooks in the NY Post, Glen Sather had no intention of firing John Tortorella after the Rangers season ended.

That changed when “a critical mass” of players told Glen Sather that they felt Tortorella’s overbearing personality and coaching style was standing in the way of progress.

Brooks says that Henrik Lundqvist’s comments on Monday were the tipping point and that he was bothered by how the dynamic between Tortorella and the players was starting to fade.

Some other things that Brooks notes:

It wasn’t the on-ice style of play that cost Tortorella his job, it was that he was taking a harsher approach with the players in the locker room
The players were afraid to make mistakes on the ice, fearing of what the coach would say/do if they did.
Tortorella saying, after a loss in Buffalo, that he was disgusted with his top players was not something that was well received in the locker room:

“I couldn’t be more disgusted or disappointed with how our top guys played, the way we handled ourselves. That team was ripe to be beat and we simply did not play the way we are supposed to play. I don’t know what to tell you.”“We sucked and we sucked at a time where you can’t suck. We need to get it straightened out.”

In the NY Daily News, Pat Leonard writes that “multiple players” including some “top guys” went to Sather to complain about Tortorella and ask for him to be removed.

I love Messier he’s my favorite player ever, but I don’t think I would like him to coach the Rangers. At least not right now. I would definitely like him to be the GM though, and knowing his and Slats relationship. We might just see that someday.

I’d personally feel more comfortable with somebody who has made a commitment to coaching at a pro level. I’d feel more comfortable with an AHL head coach since the style of play is more similar to the NHL than college hockey

This was supposed to be a rebuilding year for the Red Wings and they were a goal away from the WCF. Babcock has them on the right trajectory. Why would Detroit let him go? This is like earlier in the season when people were proposing trades like Brian Boyle for Bobby Ryan.

Here’s an article from the NY Time in July 1992, after the Rangers had won the president’s trophy under Neilson but got bounced by PItt in the playoffs that spring. Messier clearly was not a fan of him due to his defensive reactive style.

In the article, Messier mentions that they have the skaters to play more up tempo, and if you have the puck 75% of the time, they are going to win.

Wonder if something similar occurred where players on the team didn’t agree with style/approach (although I would be surprised if Capt. Callahan caused any dissension – doesn’t seem to be that kind of person/player)

From the article:
The clash is one of hockey style, not personality. Neilson is a conservative coach who loosened his system a bit during the regular season to accommodate Messier. Apparently, he did not go far enough. Messier hinted that *Neilson’s playoff strategy was too defensive, too reactive.*

Messier also bristled at the notion that the team’s problems stemmed from a lack of commitment to defense, a theory that Neilson offered after the Rangers were eliminated by the Penguins in the second round of the playoffs.

*”When you’ve got a team that can skate like ours, you want to apply pressure all over the ice,” Messier said. “It wasn’t our defensive problems. If we have the puck 75 percent of the time, we’re going to win. Defense doesn’t mean waiting for the other team to bring the puck up.”*

Nah Torts loved Cally. They had a better relationship than most, and Torts brought Cally to the Olympics. I seriously doubt he would have anything to do with it. Lundqvist was probably the biggest factor.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Kreider and MDZ said something, Kreider probably just a complaint about lack of opportunity, MDZ a complaint of being scared carcilloless about making mistakes, thus leading to an endless cycle of making mistakes.

no one on the perspective coaches list is getting me too excited… i think we should put slats back behind the bench, that would be the best. maybe he’ll do that just to spite the guy who asked about his multiple roles

I don’t know how Ruff got the reputation of a defensive coach as well. He altered the playstyle when the team needed a change In order to compete. When the Sabres were a Stanley Cup contender after the season lockout. They were one of the most offensive teams in the league.

For the Ruff enthusiasts: if you think Lundqvist had to do a lot for the Rangers under Torts, just go look at what Hasek had to do every year for the Sabres. Or Miller more recently, but with less success.

Ruff has always been a defensive guy. The first two years out of the lockout with Drury and Briere where Buffalo played an uptempo game are the outliers.